Mayday Parade at the Kingston Peel

Mayday Parade returned to rock the stage at Kingston’s The Peel, bringing along three fantastic supporting bands with them.

Elena Blagoeva

For a second time, Banquet Records brought back American pop punk band Mayday Parade to Kingston’s The Peel, with performances from support bands: Natives, For The Foxes and The Summer Set.

One of the first groups to rock the stage was Indie pop band, For The Foxes. I was impressed with the way they engaged with the crowd. The Peel is a small venue which allows fans to experience a more personal connection with the band. Lead singer, Nicholas Dungo, even shouted: “I love this intimate feeling, guys. It’s so awesome!”

This was the group’s first time in the UK. By the end of their set, I was hoping it wouldn’t be their last.

As soon as the next pop rock group, The Summer Set, were on stage the crowd was going crazy. Fans sang along as loud as possible to their first song, ‘Chelsea’. It was clear to see that the fans’ excitement was escalating with each performance. As the notes of the last song ended, there was a deafening silence; everyone was getting ready for the final band’s performance.

When Mayday Parade finally took the stage, Derek Sanders, the lead singer, walked out to their song, ‘Oh Well, Oh Well’, followed by his band mates. The highlight of the night was when Derek came on stage with his piano and played ‘Miserable At Best’, which he dedicated to a girl in the audience.

They had saved their best song for last – ‘Jamie All Over’. The crowd was jumping and screaming as loud as they could. Jake Bundrick, drummer and vocalist of the band, addressed Kingston University music students with the words: “Write the best songs you can. Be the best musician you can. Also, keep your head up.”

Overall it was a very good gig with a great selection of bands. The only thing I was disappointed about was Mayday Parade did not have time for an encore due to technical problems earlier that night. I hope Banquet Records bring all three bands back to Kingston again very soon!